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A large black cat has been caught on camera in an area where a decapitated lamb was previously found.

Pictures of the animal were taken near Tedburn St Mary, a Devon village just off the A30 past Exeter.

The pictures were sent to Devon Live by a reader in the village who said: "I was in my garden today when I saw this black cat looking thing in the field. It appeared to be mauling something in the grass.

"It got scared by my presence and this was when you could tell it was a large cat, from the way it ran through the long grass.

"These woods aren't used very much at the moment due to lockdown, and it's only about a five-mile walk from here to Dartmoor, so when I saw the prints it made me think," said Brett.

"I sent the photos to my partner, and she said that there had been sightings around this area before."

Pumas released into the wild

The main theory that attempts to explain the myth was made public in July last year when Benjamin Mee, the owner of Dartmoor Zoo, came forward and revealed that three pumas due to arrive there nearly four decades ago were released into the wild.

The pumas were supposedly given their freedom by famous circus entertainer and former Plymouth Zoo owner Mary Chipperfield.

Mr Mee said Dartmoor Zoo was expecting a delivery of five pumas after Plymouth Zoo was forced to close down in 1978.

Rather than surrender them to another zoo, Ms Chipperfield is thought to have released her favourite breeding pair into the wild, plus a young male to keep them company.

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Big cat sightings in Devon and Cornwall

Over the years, there have been dozens of sightings across Devon and Cornwall.

Inititally it was rumoured to be prowling across Bodmin Moor, and was called the Beast of Bodmin. The mysterious creature is described as a phantom wild cat, possibly with two sharp prominent teeth like those found on a leopard.

It was first spotted in 1983 and ever since reports of the Beast of Bodmin have flooded in.

Since 2000, more than 200 sightings have been reported in the Devon and Cornwall force area.